And Can It Be?
by AdamPascalFan
Summary: Lulu and Cruz team up to protect someone they both care about. Will romance blossom? Read and discover the magic of Luz!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **I own nothing...nothing nothing...Can you guess who my new couple love is? If you know me you can...I hope you enjoy. This is my new obsessive pairing!

**Prologue **

He collided into her with a solid thump and took a minute longer than strictly necessary to collect himself. He silently cursed himself for his fingers' momentary lingering on her hips. It had been only a fraction of a second and he was sure she hadn't even noticed it, but for him the memory was forever burned into his consciousness.

"Sorry." He whispered to her. He wasn't entirely sure if the apology was for the slamming into her or the lingering. One thing for sure, he wasn't really sorry for either one.

She bit her lip to keep back the disappointed sigh that threatened to overtake her when she felt him back away from her. She should have known he wouldn't have kept his fingers right where she had felt them land. He was too careful, too aware of their situation for that to occur again.

Forcing herself to concentrate on her task at hand, she turned and looked into his eyes. She felt herself melting into them yet again. She closed her eyes for a second to regain her composure.

"It's ok. Just don't distract me while I work." Silently she added "again" to her statement.

She pushed her blonde hair back behind her ears and concentrated on the lock. He knew he was supposed to be the look out. He was supposed to make sure no one would see them. And he knew it was in his best interest career wise to not know exactly how she planned on getting them inside the storage facility office.

But he couldn't help staring at her. Her absolute confidence in her ability to do this was amazing to him. Her bedrock faith that what they were doing was right and it would end up doing good instead of harm. Her jaded ease with which she had suggested this very illegal activity made him forget how young she really was. All in all, she was a fascinating package he wanted nothing more than to study and uncover.

"She's barely 18 man." He lectured himself, shaking his head to distract him from more dangerous thoughts. "Do not go down this road."

She was too young for him. Attracted far too much trouble. Not to mention the decidedly uncomfortable work environment her presence in his life was sure to create. All around, she represented one thing. Trouble. And the last thing he needed was trouble.

Then why could he not stop thinking about her?

She forced the tools in the lock and told herself she needed to pay attention or she would never be able to pull this off. Even as she lectured herself, she knew it was bogus. She could do this in her sleep. She had been doing this since she was her nephew's age. She could do this, even with being extremely aware of how close he was standing behind her and how closer he could be if he would have to move just a half a step closer to the door for any reason. She was almost praying someone would unexpectedly come in, even though her careful research showed no one was likely to come by at all. Still just one tiny half step and he would have to touch her again.

Not that she was obsessing over that moment. Not like she had been obsessing over every insignificant touch he had already given her. The slightest brush of his fingers passed hers, the barest tap of his shoulder as he walked past her in a hallway, every accidental bump, every holding of her hand in comfort, however momentarily and arbitrarily the touch happened, she remembered them and catalogued them.

Of course there was one touch she chose to remember more than most.

"Don't go there again. Don't you start. You know he won't ever let it happen again." She forced her tools a bit harder to the job she wanted them to do. The faster she could get this done, the faster they could leave. Which she was sure was exactly what he wanted.

In her rush, she felt the edge of her tool knick her finger. Feeling the unmistakable sting on pain she dropped her tools and hissed. He dropped to his knees upon hearing her distress and noticed the blood staining her skin. "What did you do to yourself, _Camorrista_?" he whispered to her.

She smiled at his use of her nickname. He wasn't even aware he had slipped and called her that. "It's nothing. A scratch."

"Scratches don't bleed like that," Before he could stop himself he drew her injured hand up towards his mouth. "What am I going to do with you?" he asked.

She could feel herself melting from the inside out as she felt his breath tease her fingers with his nearness. She felt herself get trapped in his brown eyes. She offered up a prayer to whatever God was up there for this moment to never end. She would gladly die in this dingy hallway if he would just keep looking at her that way.

Not quite realizing how breathy her voice had become, she blushed as she found herself unable to look away from him. "I'm not sure. But I know you will think of something."

He certainly was thinking of something. Something he should in no way be thinking of. Almost before he could recognize his intention, he closed the gap between her fingers and his mouth and gently kissed them one by one.

She drew in a shuddering breath. This she decided was close to heaven. As he kissed her last finger she used her hand to draw him near her. As she felt his mouth descend upon her, she realized this was her heaven. Being held by him and feeling his mouth cover hers was exactly where she wanted to spend eternity.

All thoughts of how wrong this was flew from his mind when he felt her mouth move against his. She was intoxicating. He wanted more and he gently prodded her mouth open and swept his tongue inside.

She decided breathing was overrated as his tongue explored every inch of her mouth. She returned the favor, savoring the taste of him. She tightened her grip on him as she wrapped her hands around his neck and buried them in his dark hair.

His hands moved down her sides as he shifted her body closer to him. It wasn't nearly close enough he decided. He inched his fingers under her shirt, nearly dying when he felt her bare skin underneath. Her very bare, very young skin, some part of his brain not under her spell reminded him.

"We shouldn't be doing this," he whispered, not bothering to stop kissing her.

"You've said that before" she teased back returning his kisses with equal ferocity.

Her skin burned where his fingers lay. She wanted more. She felt herself melt against the door as his hands began to move up her back, tracing patterns as he went. She moved to brace herself against the door, moving one hand to grasp the knob.

Her hand slipped.

He felt them falling backwards as the door sprung opened. He moved to brace them against his hands, reluctantly bringing an abrupt end to his exploration. He landed with heavy thump on top of her.

"Sorry" he whispered as he pulled his hands out of the back of her shirt.

"I don't believe you." She smiled as she rearranged herself. She grinned at him. "So Cruz, do you realize what this means?"

He braced himself for her to declare that she now had proof he had been lying when he said the last time had been about alcohol and nothing more. She was too damn smart for his own good.

"What Lulu?"

"We're in!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note - I'm loving that I had some of you thinking Milo. Nope. I'm a total Luz girl all the way now! Also for the sake of this story...while Mucky unfortunately happened...the Jason stuff did NOT. NEVER in my fanfic universe...hope you all enjoy!**

**Chapter 1**

_Four months earlier_

Lulu sank down onto the step of the park gazebo. She buried her face in her hands and felt the tears sting her face. The words of the doctor rolled in her head.

"_She definitely had a miscarriage."_

It wasn't fair. Every time it looked like Lucky was getting his life back together, somehow Maxie Jones came along to torpedo his every triumph. Lulu had agreed with Lucky that Maxie was most likely the person who planted the drugs in his desk at work for Elizabeth to find. And she knew in her bones that Lucky in no way pushed Maxie or caused her to fall during their argument at Kelly's.

But she couldn't really blame Elizabeth, Mac or anyone else for the suspicion they held in their eyes when they looked at Lucky. His offenses were far too recent in their memories. She couldn't fault them for that.

And as much as she knew Lucky had been framed and that he had not caused that fall, as much as she knew Elizabeth's and Mac's reactions were justified, she was just as certain that Maxie was going to use this to continue to keep a toehold in Lucky's life. The baby had been her only card left and even that one was loosing its hold on Lucky. He had been clear for months now that he would only deal with her about the baby and nothing more. She had even laughed at times seeing him walk out of Kelly's without so much as a glance in Maxie's direction. And when he had followed Elizabeth at Mom and Dad's wedding ceremony.

But Lulu had seen first hand how devastated Lucky had been after Elizabeth's two miscarriages and how devoted to her he was during her recovery from them. Logically she knew that was because of how much Lucky loved Elizabeth, but he had mourned those babies as much as she had, and they weren't even his biological children. But this one? His biological child? Lucky would never be able to turn away from Maxie now.

Unblinking, she stared out at the snow covered ground, not really processing all she was seeing. Her mind's eye kept seeing the way her big brother had crumbled at the doctor's words. She wanted nothing more than to take that moment away from him forever. Even if everyone else eventually didn't blame him for the miscarriage, she knew Lucky. He always would.

"Lulu? Lulu?"

The voice was soft, but firm. Barely above a whisper but loud enough to interrupt her thoughts. Blinking, she looked up into the dark eyes of Cruz Rodriquez. She wiped hurriedly at her eyes. A Spencer was never seen crying in public. "Cruz. What are you…how long have you been here?"

Cruz offered a smile at his partner's little sister. He had been cutting through the park to find Lucky. Mac had torn out of the station like a bat out of hell after a receiving a phone call about Maxie. He had figured whatever the phone call was about, Lucky would surely be on the receiving end of an ass chewing from Mac.

"I've been here long enough to know that you shouldn't be alone right now. Let me call your brother and…"

"No!" She grabbed his arm in urgency. He looked at her puzzled. In the months they had known each other she had never once touched him outside of the handshake they shared when Lucky introduced them. "You can't call him right now. Not about this. And not now."

Cruz knelt down in front of her, not removing her hand from his arm. He grasped her free hand in his. If she didn't want him contacting Lucky, it had to be bad. "Lulu?"

Biting her lip and looking to the sky, she drew a ragged breath. "Lucky thought Maxie was the one to set him up the other day with the pills. He went to confront her. They argued and she fell down the stairs at Kelly's." She looked him dead in the eye with an intensity he'd never seen in her before. "She fell Cruz. She fell. Lucky did not push her."

He kept his voice even, much like he did when talking with a witness to an extremely violent crime. "She fell, Lulu. I know Lucky would never push her."

She nodded. "She fell. And she lost the baby." Her voice broke on the last sentence, unable to control her emotions anymore. Sobs racked her body and she curled into herself.

Cruz rocked back on his heels, shell-shocked by her words. A miscarriage? He knew Lucky was not a happy expectant father where Maxie was concerned. He hadn't missed the eye rolls and the way his partner's body tensed whenever she came near him. But this? As unenthusiastic as Lucky was about this pregnancy, Cruz realized he would have never wanted this to be the outcome.

As he watched Lulu sob helplessly, he felt a need to protect her. He wasn't quite sure where the urge came from but right now Lulu needed someone. Lucky wasn't available for obvious reasons. Nikolas was giving the squad hell all day every day over Spencer's kidnapping. Telling himself it was because he didn't do well with any female crying near him and that Lucky would kick his ass if he ever found out he had seen Lulu upset and done nothing to help her, he pulled her gently into his arms and laid her head on his shoulder. Cruz rubbed her head and whispered softly to her the words his own grandmother had used for him while he was growing up. "No grita el pequeño. Todo será fino."

"I feel so stupid." She muttered into his chest. "I couldn't say anything supportive about this pregnancy from the second I found out about it. So why am I crying?"

Cruz smiled at that. Lucky had told him some of the things Lulu had yelled at Maxie. He had even seen the two go at it a few times at Kelly's. It always made for some entertaining dining. "Because someone you love is hurting and you feel helpless?" he guessed. "I know it's a foreign concept the Spencers but go with me here."

She continued on, not hearing his lame attempt at a joke. "I didn't even believe she was pregnant. I thought she was faking it the entire time. I was hounding Lucky all the time to actually see some papers, go to a doctor's appointment, demand a paternity test, anything to get him away from that drug pushing slut's grimy hands. I should be jumping for joy that he escaped her trap. Not crying like a baby in the middle of the park."

He gently pushed her back from him and watched as she wiped her eyes and shoved her hair behind her ears. "Lulu, I don't know why you feel the way you do. I can't answer that one. All I know is that right now Lucky needs you to be there for him. So if all this is necessary for you to be able to do that, then let it all out now. Don't fight it. Don't hide it. You'll be no good for him if you do ok?" She nodded in agreement. "Alright then. Let me take you home."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 2**

Cruz sighed in defeat as he watched yet another associate of Sonny Corinthos waltz his way through what was seemingly bullet proof charges without so much as a slap on the wrist. Didn't really matter that this week Ric Lansing was gunning for Sonny's head. All it took was two minutes of arriving for that slick lawyer to somehow find some tiny loophole to get her every client released. Cruz would have wondered how she slept at night, but he could hear the station's old joke. She slept very well, and on a very expensive mattress.

"Hey Rodriquez! Tough break man!" Steve Abbott's voice rang out across the booking room as he left escorting a suspect towards the visitation room.

Cruz barely managed a nod towards Abbott. He was currently debating whether Abbott was the stupidest cop ever hired for the PCPD or just the most socially inept. How the man had missed the squad room gossip that had lingered for months was just beyond him. But somehow the man had not only missed all the gossip, he missed actual news as well.

Abbott had the unfortunate distinction of having been not only off the day Maxie Jones miscarried, he had also been off on paternity leave. And to make matters even more estranged in the squad room, the first two cops he had stopped to show off baby pictures to upon his return had been Mac and Lucky.

That particular day hadn't started off that badly, Cruz mused. It actually had been the first time in months that Mac hadn't purposely assigned Lucky the least desirable assignment for the day. The first sign that the silent war that had been raging between commissioner and officer was ending. But then stupid Abbott had to bust through the doors.

It would be impossible to forget the way neither Lucky nor Mac could bring themselves to look at the pictures Abbott had almost shoved under their faces. On some level Cruz realized the man hadn't really meant to be cruel but Cruz still couldn't figure out how exactly the man had missed the biggest gossip story of the force all year. Normally one couldn't sneeze in the morning without the midnight shift hearing about it before they fell asleep but Abbott succeeded in missing that story, no Cruz corrected himself, THE story? It was mind-boggling.

He went through the routine of completing the discharge paperwork. The releasing of Sonny and Jason's associates had become so common that the squad had referred to it as "the routine". The paperwork even had its own special spot on the clerk's desk. The tray jokingly marked "Revolving door."

The clerk eyed him hopefully as he neared her desk with the paperwork completed. He really wished he could remember her name but ever since Lucky had nicknamed her "The Pariah", it was all he could think of whenever he saw her.

The look The Pariah was giving him was this close to sexual harassment. He almost groaned when he noticed her lick her lips a bit at his approach. "Hey sweetness" she called out to him. "You got something for me?"

He could almost hear Lucky's usual muttered response to her question. _"A restraining order?"_ and he bit back his usual urge to laugh at it. "Just the routine."

She gestured to her desk. "Leave it in the revolving door sweets." As he deposited the paperwork and made his way back to the main squad room, he heard her call "Stop back anytime!"

"Not without my gun and pepper spray." He muttered.

He stopped abruptly when he rounded the last corner into the squad room. Maxie Jones stood there, crying on Mac's shoulder and conveniently near Lucky's desk. Cruz was thankful that for once Lucky had escaped her. Her near constant presence in the squad room since the miscarriage was becoming a bigger liability by the second.

When she wasn't interrupting a case to cry some about the miscarriage, she had recently taken to calling Lucky with "emergencies" regarding that stray puppy. It was almost as if whenever she thought Lucky may have forgotten about the miscarriage she would appear to talk about it with him. Cruz hadn't missed her habit of showing up on days when Lucky was going to see Elizabeth or Cameron.

"Commissioner!" Cruz was nearly flattened as another officer raced around the corner. He leaned against the wall just in time to avoid being knocked off balance.

"Commissioner. You have to come here right now." The officer was saying.

Cruz watched Mac kiss Maxie goodbye and follow the officer down another hallway. Not entirely sure why he was still watching her, he maintained his position. Some instinct of his was telling him to stay in place, it was important. Listening to his instincts kept him alive in the field, so he decided to follow them.

He watched as Maxie dried her eyes and began touching the items on Lucky's desk. Although her back was turn, he could imagine the look on her face as she touched the picture of Elizabeth and Cameron. Cruz actually smirked when she turned the picture over, laying it flat on the desk but it was quickly replaced with a frown as he noticed her sink into his partner's seat with an air of ownership. An attitude of belonging there.

That, Cruz decided was what was bugging him the most. Her attitude. She felt compelled to remind Lucky every two days or so about the loss she suffered, as if Lucky needed a reminder. And when she had ever talked to him, she treated him like she needed to be his friend because she was going to be in Cruz's life for a long time coming.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Abbott approach Maxie. Cruz felt his mouth drop open as he realized that Abbott actually was about to show Maxie the baby pictures. Surely the man couldn't be that dense to show a woman who just had a miscarriage baby pictures! By now someone on the force had to have told him why Lucky had practically ran from him that day and Mac had assigned him the worst assignment for the day. He really couldn't be that clueless.

But apparently Abbott was that clueless because that was exactly what he was doing. Cruz was about to approach them and stop the madness. No matter how he felt about Maxie, no one deserved to be subjected to that kind of stupidity, when Maxie did something surprising that made him stop in his tracks.

She looked at the pictures.

Not only did she look at the pictures, she was smiling at them. Even laughing at a few of them. She didn't seem distressed, depressed or even wistful for what she could have had. She was actually pleased to be looking at those pictures and happy for Abbott.

Cruz shook his head and turned back towards the booking room. Lucky and Mac couldn't even bring themselves to look at Abbott's pictures and yet Maxie, who kept talking about how sad she was over loosing the baby, was able to not only look at the pictures but appear happy for Abbott? It didn't make any sense. In his limited experience, women who just had miscarriages did come within 15 feet of babies or other pregnant women if they could at all help it.

So why was Maxie so fine with it?

"_I didn't even believe she was pregnant. I thought she was faking it the entire time." _Lulu's words from the park echoed through his brain. He had initially dismissed her statement as a product of an over-developed sense of sibling loyalty. But after what he just witnessed, Cruz couldn't help but wonder if Lulu had been onto something the entire time.

He turned back to head towards his desk. Maybe if he actually talked to her, there would be a good explanation for what he saw. There just had to be.

As he approached her, he noticed Lucky returning to the station from the main entrance, with Lulu close behind him. He had forgotten Lulu had come to take her brother out to lunch today. Cruz paused for a moment and did not miss the eye roll Lulu gave when she noticed who was sitting in Lucky's chair.

"Maxie" he heard Lulu greet the other young women through clearly gritted teeth. "What a surprise."

If Cruz hasn't had seen her earlier, he would have almost believed Maxie had been sitting in Lucky's chair crying the entire time. She launched herself out of the chair and into Lucky's chest, sobbing "Oh Lucky, I just couldn't take it today. I had to see you."

His partner was clearly startled by Maxie's presence at his desk, but Lucky covered it well. With a glance towards both Cruz and Lulu, he gently maneuvered the now weeping girl towards the waiting room.

"Great. He can't go one day feeling somewhat good without Weepy Wenchy over there destroying my hard work" Lulu muttered.

"I see you're doing well with that supportive thing we talked about." Cruz remarked as he came up behind her.

She blushed. She looked younger when she blushed. It was cute. "Cruz. I didn't see you come up."

"That happens when you are too busy glaring holes in the back of Maxie's head."

Lulu threw her hands up in the air and threw herself down in her brother's now abandoned chair. "I can't help it. She drives me crazy. Its like she has this slut monkey radar that goes off whenever Lucky is feeling ok that tells her to show up and destroy everything." She leaned her head towards him and lowered her voice to a whisper. "Do you know she showed up at Elizabeth's last appointment? If I didn't know better I would swear she was doing all of this on purpose."

_Maybe you do know better_, Cruz thought to himself, recalling Maxie's strange behavior before the Spencer siblings had shown up. _Maybe you do._

"What do you mean? Maybe I do know better about what?"

Cruz looked up into her blue eyes. Had he said that out loud? Apparently he had. _Chingado!_ Maybe she would just let this go. He'd just wait her out.

"Cruz? What did you mean?"

_Chingado!_ She wasn't going to let this go. "I didn't mean anything by it. I was just talking. Don't pay attention to me." He adjusted his tie, a nervous tic he hoped she didn't notice.

Her eyes narrowed and focused on his hands. _Mierda!_ She noticed. And if she was anything like her brother she would know that was a tell. He damned Luke Spencer for ever teaching his children anything.

"No you meant something. Tell me what you meant."

He glanced back towards the waiting room where Lucky was still seated, talking with Maxie. Cruz glanced back quickly enough but Lulu caught the direction his eyes were going in. Her blue eyes widen and she started to speak.

"You know something don't you! You know something about that grimy…" Her voice began to get dangerously loud as she rose from her seat and Cruz could see Mac rounding the corner. This was all he needed. World War Three to break out in the PCPD squad room over Lulu Spencer's mouth!

Cruz rose up quickly and placed his hand over her mouth. Her eyes flashed in anger. The blushing was cute, but Cruz decided he liked her better angry. He shook his head at that thought. "Be quiet. Do you want to drag your brother into further trouble with his boss?"

It was the right approach to use. Lulu shook her head and began to sit back down. Slowly he removed his hand. "I don't know anything. I just saw some things is all."

"What? What did you see?"

Mac was getting dangerously close to his desk. The last thing his career needed was to be seen discussing the possibility of his boss's daughter faking a pregnancy. That move just screamed promotion. He'd most likely regret this but he had sent the look in her eyes. There was no way Lulu was going to let this subject rest until he told her.

"I'm not letting this go Cruz." He did a double take. Was she a mindreader? "You better just tell me cause I don't plan on leaving until you do and I can make a lot more noise than that. Just ask Lucky."

Cruz bit back a groan. He should have known she would cause trouble. "Not here. Too many ears around." He nodded his head in Mac's direction.

"Fine I'll meet you later but I won't forget about this. Where? What time?"

Cruz thought of the most secluded place he knew and one that no one would question him going to. "The PCU library. Fifth floor. One of the private study rooms. I get off at seven. I'll meet you then."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 3**

Lulu paced the length of the small study room for what felt like the millionth time. She glanced at her watch again. 7:05. Cruz was late.

She knew that there could be a thousand reasons why he wasn't here yet. A call could have come in. A lead could have come through. A witness may have finally come forward. Lulu knew from experience and discussion with Elizabeth it was a rare day when Lucky actually got off when his scheduled shift ended. So five minutes in cop time really didn't constitute late, she reasoned.

Bullshit! He had seen something that could help her get that whorish viper away from Lucky. He had answers and she wanted them now, damn it! She stomped her foot in frustration, not caring how childish it made her seem.

She flopped into one of the two chairs situated around the small table. She flipped her hair out of her face, taking out her impatience. Lulu glanced at her watch again. 7:07.

"Aggh!"

The door to the room cracked open and Cruz's head peeked around the corner. "Finally. You could have let me know which room you where in." he declared.

She shrugged. "You're the hot shot detective. I thought you would be able to figure it out. Besides you were the one who didn't say which study room up here." She paused for a moment. "How did you know about these anyway?" Most of the non-students didn't wander past the third floor of the library. The fourth and fifth floors were mainly the homes of small group study rooms and the books that were never actually opened until research papers needed writing. Needless to say they were prime make-out session locations.

Cruz shrugged his shoulders. "I'm taking some grad school courses at night. Not as many distractions on this floor."

It was only then she noticed the backpack hoisted over his left shoulder. And she realized with a start this was the first time she had ever seen him outside the station in something other than a dress shirt, tie, and sport jacket. She decided that while his everyday work wear was fine and all, she much rather see him this way. A plain t-shirt. Well fitting jeans. The effect was lethal to the senses she felt.

Of course why she would react this way at all to him, she didn't have a clue. This was Cruz. Her brother's partner. And most importantly right now, the one who possibly held the key to getting the ho-beast away from Lucky once and for all. Lulu shook off her momentary appreciation of Cruz's taste in clothing and felt her irritation return in full force.

"You're late!"

He cocked an eyebrow upwards. "Barely. And I would have gotten here earlier if someone had thought to let me know where exactly she was up here."

Lulu folded her arms in a huff. "If someone hadn't practically made me swear in blood that I wouldn't mention it to Lucky or anyone else at the station, maybe I would have." She pursed her lips at him, daring him to respond to that one. When she saw him smile and shake his head, Lulu leaned back in chair. _'Score one for me!'_ she thought proudly. _'Spencer one. Rodriguez zero.'_

Cruz busied himself with unloading his backpack and making himself comfortable in the small room. At first Lulu was content to simply gloat in the aftermath of her victory but as he showed no signs of even starting to tell her anything she felt her irritation return.

"Cruz!" she spat out.

He raised his head and gave her an innocent look with a twinkle in his eye. "Yes Lulu?"

He was baiting her. She knew it. She knew it but she couldn't help herself. He had kept her waiting for hours since he had first even hinted he knew something and now he wanted to play games? She pounded her hand on the arm of the chair. "You've put me off long enough. You wouldn't say anything at the station. You make me meet you here, where I spend enough of my time thank you very much. You were late. And you are going to tell me what you saw right now or I will scream bloody murder so loud you won't be able to come within five feet of this library again!"

"Ease off there Tigre." Cruz held his hands up in mock surrender. "I said I would tell you and I will."

He ran his hand through his hair. "It could mean nothing. There could be a perfectly logical explanation for what I saw." he started to explain.

"Which you don't have because there probably isn't one."

"Which I don't have because someone decided to come back from lunch and began to shoot death rays at her before I could talk to her."

Lulu felt her face flush and she looked away. He had a point. "OK fine. You didn't get a chance to talk to her. There could be a logical explanation, yadda yadda yadda. Just get on with it!"

"Fine. I was coming back from the booking room when I saw Maxie with Mac and she was crying at Lucky's desk. I didn't want to interrupt so I stayed put. Mac had to leave and for some reason I watched her. And that's when I saw it."

"What? Her head spin around like the possessed devil dog that she is?"

"Would it kill you to use her actual name?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "Probably. Go on."

"Anyways, have you heard Lucky talk about Abbott?" She nodded. "Well he had a kid recently and he loves to show off his baby pictures. He tried a couple of times to show them to Lucky and Mac and they couldn't look at them; in fact they ran off. I saw him approaching Maxie with those pictures and I started out to stop him when she looked at the pictures."

He wore an expectant look on his face, as if he wanted her to understand the significance of what he had just said. "She looked at the pictures of the baby Lulu. And she didn't get upset or quiet. She looked at the pictures and she looked happy about it. I didn't see her start crying again until you and Lucky showed up."

"She faked it." Lulu whispered. "She completely and totally faked it."

"Lulu…" Cruz's cautious voice tried to interrupt her.

"She faked it. She looked at baby pictures. She faked it. She's putting my brother through hell for no reason and I'm going to stop her right now."

She rose out of her seat and headed straight for the door. Before she could even touch the knob, Cruz grabbed her arm and spun her around.

"Let go of me!" She glared at him icily. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing." He retorted.

Lulu pulled against his grip, trying to break it. Her movements only succeeded his hand tightening around her forearm. "I'm going call the _Weekly World News_ and tell them aliens have landed. I'm going to tell Lucky that the ho beast faked it."

"And what if there is a logical explanation Lulu? What if your conclusion is wrong?" Seeing her about to respond he held his hand up. "I know that you don't think you are wrong but just go with me here. What if you are wrong?"

She was quiet as she pondered his words. There was a less than one percent chance she was wrong about this in her mind. But what if she was?

Cruz continued, his voice more gentle. "Lulu you told me before that you've told Lucky you thought she was faking right?" She nodded and he continued. " I've heard the way he talks about you. He thinks the world of you. Now he didn't believe you then without any proof. He's probably not going to just accept your conclusion that she faked it based on what I just told you. He'll probably talk to Maxie much as you hate it. And even if you're right and she did fake everything, she'll probably have some sort of explanation that makes sense. And Lucky will probably accept it. All you will have accomplished is ripping open your brother's heart again."

She closed her eyes. Cruz was right damn it. If Maxie had faked this pregnancy she would come up with some explanation somehow. Hell she had come up with everything else so far. Paperwork, appointment cards, hell even a sonogram picture. If she went to Lucky right this second, all she would accomplish is breaking his heart more and that was the last thing she wanted.

Lulu let out a low sigh. "You're right. I'll just break his heart again." She sank down into the seat Cruz had abandoned. "But I still think she faked it. And if she did then he needs to know Cruz."

Cruz knelt down in front of her. "I agree with you. If she faked it, then Lucky needs to know the truth. But I stress the if part Lulu. You're going to need proof. Solid proof that Maxie won't be able to argue her way out of."

"I know you're right. But I don't know where to start."

He was silent for a long minute as she wondered where she would even begin to start looking. He released a sigh of his own. "I'll help you."

She shot him a confused look. "What?"

"I said I would help you. More than likely you'll make me regret every minute of it but you need someone to keep you rational. I don't know if you've realized this yet, but you Spencers tend to get a bit emotional when it comes to your family. If you don't have someone to keep you in line, you're going to do exactly what I just stopped you from doing."

Lulu didn't argue his point. It was impossible to argue with the truth.

"Your brother is a good partner, a good cop and a good friend to me Lulu. I don't like seeing him hurt anymore than you do so I'll help you. But we are not going to tell him anything about this unless we have bullet proof evidence. I mean slam dunk, grand slam, touchdown…"

"Are you finished with the sports clichés? I get it. I won't tell Lucky anything about anything until we can take it to court and win. I understand."

"And if we don't find anything?"

"But we will."

"Lulu, if we don't find anything?"

She rolled her eyes. "Fine if we don't find anything, which won't happen, then I'll drop it completely and never mention this to Lucky again." Lulu crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Satisfied?"

"Immeasurably."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 4**

"Why does Lansing hate us again?" Cruz asked as he sat down, his arms loaded with paperwork with a new case to prepare against Jason and Sonny. "I mean he does realize this case will never go further than our desk right?"

Lucky shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea what caused this current jones for Jason and quite frankly I don't want to know. I think somehow our sanity is safer if we don't know."

Cruz nodded his head in agreement. He rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration at once again being forced to play out some twisted family mind games at the request of the DA. Letting out a sigh, he moved to start filing the necessary forms when a small note caught his eye in am unfamiliar handwriting. A handwriting that appeared to him to have been done by a female.

"Uh, Lucky," he started nervously. "You haven't sent The Pariah around here today have you?"

His partner cocked an eyebrow up in Cruz's direction. "I haven't felt the need to go get tested for STDs in the last ten minutes so that would be a no." An amused smile crossed Lucky's face. "Why? Are you feeling unappreciated?" he teased.

Cruz held up the note. "No. Just stalked." He mentally prepared himself as he opened the note. He prayed nothing like naked pictures would fall out. Now that he would never hear the end of. Or repress the memory of.

_Cruz-_

_Meet me at our spot in the library. I have an idea. Call me when you're off. I'm free all night._

_Lulu_

"And what does your future restraining order have to say today?"

_Miedra! _Cruz adjusted his tie. He had been too busy wondering when exactly Lulu had showed up at the station and how exactly no one notified Lucky his sister was there, to come up with anything that would remotely hold up under scrutiny. He was so in trouble here.

"Oh its just her usual stuff. Nothing new."

Lucky looked up from his desk. "Nothing new? The woman changes perfume every time she sees you come around the corner. I highly doubt that. Lemme see it." Lucky put his hand out and attempted to grab the note.

"No." In a move that Cruz recognized would just further fuel his partner's curiosity, he jerked the note back out of Lucky's reach.

"Cruz."

"Lucky."

"What is the matter with you? I'm your witness to your multi-million dollar sexual harassment suit remember? We have a deal. I back you up and you give me a cut of the money. Now that my friend is evidence so let me see."

"No its nothing. Don't worry about it." He tried to burry the note under the piles of folders, silently praying for Lucky just to drop this.

From the look on Lucky's face, Cruz's prayers were going to go unanswered. "Look man, I don't know what your issue is today….."

"Yo Spencer. Your wife and kid are here." The desk sergeant's bellow echoed over to them and stopped whatever thought process Lucky had in its track.

Cruz had always been fond of Elizabeth and Cameron but right now he damn well loved them. He wasn't sure what caused this unexpected and unplanned visit, but Cruz said thankful prayers for them. No way would Lucky remember anything about the note now.

"Daddy!" The speeding three year old shot past Cruz and made a beeline straight for his father. "Surprise!"

Lucky smiled and knelt down to look Cameron in the eye. "Yes it is."

"He begged me to come by." Elizabeth said, following behind as quickly as she could manage. A speeding three year old was no match for a pregnant woman. "Hi Cruz."

"Hi Cruz!" Cameron repeated.

"Hello you two." Sensing a family moment occurring and spying a way to call Lulu without causing suspicion, Cruz ruffled Cameron's hair. "Hate to leave so quickly but we have a new case that needs to get started." He held up the folder that he had stuffed Lulu's note into as proof. "I'll just be heading to the file room."

He beat a hasty retreat out of the Spencer family's eyesight and pulled his cell phone out. At their first meeting, Lulu had insisted on programming her number in. He had changed her name in his phone book to "partner" just so he wouldn't accidentally call Lucky when trying to call up Lulu's phone number. That would be the last thing they would need.

"Hey its me. You know the drill. Leave me a message and I'll get back to you when my oh-so-active social life allows it!"

Cruz did not want to risk being caught leaving a long message. Lucky wouldn't come near him with Liz and Cameron nearby but he wasn't sure how long that would last. God help him if Cameron decided to go running down the hall for a game of tag.

"Its Cruz. I'll see you at six thirty."

_PCU library_

He tried to hide his smile before he opened the door. He knew Lulu was going to be angry with him. His message had six thirty and he was ten minutes late. Of course he had a great reason for it, but if her last reaction had been any indication she wouldn't want to hear it.

But for her little stunt with the note today, she deserved to squirm just a little bit. She could have ruined everything had Lucky actually gotten his hands on the note not to mention the beating that would fall him for having a "place" with his partner's little sister. So making her wait ten minutes was more than an adequate revenge.

"Do you not own a watch? Is it impossible for you to arrive someplace on time?" she exploded as he walked in the room.

"I'm not that late" he managed to respond without laughing.

Lulu swiveled in her chair in a huff, causing her blonde ponytail to swing wildly. She had her arms crossed in front of her chest and a scowl on her face. Today she looked much younger than she actually was.

"Besides you almost got me busted today with that note. If Elizabeth and Cameron hadn't stopped by when they did…"

"They did? Good. When I left them, Liz had only promised to think about seeing him."

"You sent them?" Cruz stared at her open mouthed. She had not only almost exposed their secret meeting to her overprotective brother; she had also sent his salvation? He rubbed his forehead.

"Of course I did. Who do you think was watching Cameron today? I dropped the note off for you this morning before you came in on my way to get him. And since the only person on earth who is more stubborn than my brother is Elizabeth, I knew they needed a little push in the right direction."

"What did you do?"

She smiled coyly. "I may have mentioned to Cameron that Lucky was working today and we would be close by." She grinned even wider. "I may have mentioned it a few hundred times before I knew Liz was meeting us."

Cruz shook his head. "_Camorrista" _he said almost in awe of her. She was almost scary in her determination to make sure Lucky and Liz were reunited.

She cocked her eyebrow up. "What did you just call me?"

"_Camorrista_. Roughly translated it means troublemaker." He shook his finger at her playfully. "And that Little Spencer is exactly what you are."

She grinned proudly. He should have known telling a Spencer they were a troublemaker would be taken as a compliment. "So what is this idea you had?"

Lulu swiveled around in her excitement. "Its so simple. I can't believe we didn't think of it the other day." She leaned forward and looked him dead in the eye. "We're going to get Maxie's hospital records and prove she faked it."

"And how are we going to get these records?"

"We'll steal them from the records department. It should be easy. No locks to pick or anything."

Cruz fought the urge to laugh. She could not be serious. There was no way she had just suggested that he, an officer of the law, just do something illegal. Something illegal like stealing confidential patient records. But one look in her eyes and she could see she was serious. Deadly serious.

"Lulu we can't do that."

"Why not? Its perfect. We get the records and then we have medical proof of what did happen. Lucky has to listen to medical proof."

"He would but there is one problem." Seeing her look at him curiously, he pressed his point. "Lulu I'm a cop and that's illegal. Do you see the problem here?"

"No."

"Lulu!"

"Geez, what is it about the PCPD that just sucks the fun out of everyone? It happened to Lucky. I thought you might not have the same issue but apparently you have the stick up your ass as well!"

"Well excuse me for not wanting to commit complete career suicide with you on this."

"Oh that is not going to happen!"

"Excuse me? Looking into the Commissioner's niece isn't career suicide? We don't all have family businesses that will hire us Lulu. We are not breaking in and stealing records. In the first place, it's illegal. In the second place, even if it wasn't illegal, you are related or family friends with half the staff in that place. There is no way you can pull this off without being noticed and I'm not doing it so you are stuck Little Spencer."

Her eyes flashed and her mouth twisted. He had her beat. She knew it and she did not like it. The look she was shooting him could melt steel. Her determination was one part scary and one part admirable. And completely hot.

Hot? He turned away from her momentarily to rub the bridge of his nose. Where the hell had that thought come from? She was his partner's baby sister. Key word baby. She had just barely passed her 18th birthday. He should find her irritating. He should find her amusing but he should not find her hot.

He looked back at her. She was still glaring, although this time at the wall. She was so focused. That focus could be a very good thing, he mused to himself. Almost as soon as he thought it he shook his head to rid himself of the thought.

Do not go down that road man. Only bad things lay ahead there. She is 18. BARELY 18. Her brother would not hesitate to break you into many tiny pieces. Keep your mind on a professional level you dirty old man.

"Look you're right that medical records would be great stuff. And Maxie wouldn't be able to argue them away, but Lulu we cannot risk getting arrested ourselves. That won't help anyone."

Lulu had turned and looked at him when he started to speak. Almost before he stopped speaking her facial expression changed. _Miedra! _He had just given her a new idea.

"What? What's that look for?" he asked nervously.

She smiled. "You're completely right Cruz. This plan is flawed. But I think, I just might have a way that's even better."

"Lulu what are you thinking?"

She rose and moved quickly past him towards the door. She paused and moved back quickly to hug him. "Thanks Cruz. I'll call you when I iron out all the details. You are the greatest." And with that she was gone.

He sank into the chair. "Camorrista." He whispered ruefully shaking his head. "Camorrista."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 5**

"Little Spencer. You are avoiding me. Meet me tonight at 7:30."

Lulu had played the voice mail message at least a dozen times since her last class. She kept telling herself she was just hoping that Cruz's message had magically changed. In reality, she was enjoying his calling her "Little Spencer" far too much to be comfortable with him alone.

Not that was the reason she was avoiding him. It had nothing to do with the way he made her feel like an absolute girl when called her "Little Spencer." Or the way she would melt just a little when he would slip and speak in Spanish around her. Or the fact that she was beginning to realize just how much she preferred seeing him in his non-work attire than his suit coats and ties. No the reason she was avoiding him was much simpler than that.

Cruz was going to kill her when she told him her latest plan.

Or to be more precise, he was going to kill her when he found out she had already started on this plan knowing he would hate it.

She glanced at her watch. It was 6:30. One hour to meet Cruz, even though he would probably be late. It was too late to go back to home but much too early to go to their spot. And it wasn't like she was going to do homework right now. It was Friday night after all. She had a reputation to uphold.

She knitted her eyebrows together. It was Friday night and Cruz wanted to meet her? Didn't he have a girlfriend or someone he was supposed to see tonight? Lulu allowed a small smile at the thought that even if he did have someone he was going to see, he wanted to see her first.

Not that she was considering that important.

Gathering her belongings, she decided to head towards the student fitness center. Might as well do something productive she thought. She didn't want to spend all night on the computer. Again.

Cruz maybe slowly turning her into a girl, but there was no way he was going to turn her into a Spinelli.

"Besides it's not like he's going to show up on time anyway" she grumbled to herself.

_PCU Student Fitness Center_

Lulu paused on the elevated indoor walking track to adjust the ear jacks to the I-pod she had liberated from Lucas's dorm room earlier in the week. For someone who was raised by Spencers, sometimes her cousin was just completely naïve. For reasons she had yet to figure out, he had two of them and was constantly losing one of them. Hers was out of commission since Roul had decided it was bone and attempted to bury it in Lila's rose garden, she figured Lucas wouldn't really mind if she borrowed it. Even if he didn't know about the borrowing per say.

She moved over to the side to tie her shoe, noticing that she was directly over the basketball court, where what looked to be a fierce game was taking place. Shirts versus skins. She had no idea of the score, but Lulu felt every bit the winner as she paused a moment to enjoy the view.

Just then one of the shirtless players hit the floor and slid on his back. Inwardly Lulu winced. He threw his head back and, for the first time, Lulu realized exactly what she was witnessing.

Cruz Rodriquez was playing basketball shirtless.

_Here I go_

_Here I go_

_Here I go again_

_Girls what's my weakness?_

_Men!_

Any other time, Lulu would have found her cousin's taste in music hysterical. As Salt-n-Peppa blared in her ears, and she could not stop staring, she couldn't bring herself to care. She had seen guys shirtless a time or two in her life. Her brothers. Lucas. Dillon. But this was different. This was _Cruz_. This was a man.

She had no idea _that_ was hiding under those dress shirts and ties. Even the t-shirts she had spotted him in after hours did not due justice to his physique. It was clear he worked out, but he wasn't an over muscled freak. And while he didn't look like he could break a person in two, Lulu could tell he would be able to handle himself physically in any situation.

His hair was probably damp, she mused. Her eyes lingered over his abs as he lay there catching his breath. She could imagine the sweat that had to be dripping down his chest. Lulu felt herself lean forward as if she would be able to see a tiny droplet from her position. He sat up, pulling his knees towards his chest, and she felt herself loose her breath a little when she noticed the way his muscles defined themselves in that particular position.

She suddenly found herself flying towards the ground of the track herself. Lulu threw her hands out to prevent herself from falling flat on her face. Steadying herself she turned back to glare at whoever had been unfortunate enough to interrupt her appreciation of the male form.

"Damn Lulu. I'm sorry. I didn't see you there." Guy, her cousin's on-again/off-again boyfriend offered his hand out to help her up. He offered her a sheepish grin. "Forgive me Gorgeous?"

She smiled back in return. She couldn't stay mad at Guy too long. He was just too sweet. "Only this time."

Guy shot her a wink. "So just exactly what had you so distracted Gorgeous?" He glanced down towards the court and her eyes followed his. Lulu felt a twinge of disappointment realizing Cruz was now up and playing with everyone else. She blew out a sigh of disappointment.

Amused, Guy's eyes twinkled when his met hers. "You Gorgeous have good taste. If I wasn't perfectly happy with your cousin…"

She nudged him with her arm. "Give it a week." She caught sight of her watch. 7:00. Shit! She had to meet Cruz in thirty minutes and she was positive that she looked like a dirty sweat sock. She had to go! She had to get ready!

"Look I hate to be a hit and run, but I have to go meet someone. I'll see you later."

Guy waved his goodbye. "Sure! I'll see you when you return Lucas's I-Pod!" he called after her as she ran towards the changing room.

_The Study Room_

Lulu adjusted her top and smoothed her hair for what was probably the fifteenth time in the past two minutes. She really hated acting like a girl and here she was doing this for _Cruz. _Someone who only saw her as a little sister type she was sure.

Of course it wasn't like she hadn't overcome that roadblock before, she thought wickedly.

_Down girl. For all you know he has a girlfriend or a fiancée._ She was reasonably certain if Cruz _was _married Lucky would have mentioned it by now. At least she thought he would have. _He is your brother's partner and he's only doing this to help out Lucky. It's nothing to do with his feelings regarding you. He probably doesn't even have any feelings about you. And haven't we learned our lesson about trying to force someone to feel something for us?_

Her thoughts were heading to dangerous territory so she focused on her watch instead. Just as she thought, he was late.

As if on cue, he chose that moment to walk in. "You've been avoiding me." He accused, wagging his finger at her.

She crossed her arms over her chest. "You are late. When you call and demand someone meets you the least you could do is show up on time you know."

Cruz shrugged and tossed his bag on the ground. "I was delayed." Noticing that his hair was damp and he had changed out of the gym shorts and back into his standard uniform of jeans and a t-shirt, Lulu felt herself grow warm as she realized his delay must have been the shower. She bit her lip and looked towards the ground to keep herself from blushing. Or concentrating too hard on the idea of Cruz in the shower.

"So Camorrista, just what have you been planning? I know you have something up your sleeve. You've been too quiet."

Suddenly the reason she had been avoiding him came back to her. He was going to hate this. "I don't know what you are talking about."

"Little Spencer. You've not called me in over a week. You haven't conveniently arranged for Lucky and Elizabeth to run into each other since the last time."

"I could have. They could have not followed through."

He snorted in laughter. "I doubt it. If there is one thing I have learned from working with your brother it's that when he's quiet, he's generally planning something a bit crazy." He pointed directly at her. "I think you are exactly like him. So spill it. What have you been planning?"

Lulu bit her lip. Damn it. "Well there is one thing I was kinda working on…"

Before she could continue her explanation any further, one Damien Spinelli crashed through the door. "Blonde One! I finally found you! I think I may have a way to crack that firewall that surrounds the hospital records! The Jackal is the man!"

Lulu met Cruz's wide-eyed stare. He glanced back and forth between herself and Spinelli. She could see the wheels turning in his head. She could see him figuring it all out.

"Dude! Apollo! Nice to finally meet you! The Blonde One said you were part of The Jackal's crew!"

"Lulu…"

She grinned sheepishly and gestured towards Spinelli. "Cruz, meet my plan."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 6**

He. Was. In. Hell.

Cruz was reasonably sure he was a good person. He wasn't a career killer. He didn't do drugs. He didn't drink to excess and never drove drunk. He had a job protecting people for the love of Pete and he was damn good at it.

So what in the hell had he done to deserve this?

He stared, not really registering Lulu's increasingly hurried explanation as to why the newest member of Corrinthos/Morgan's payroll was the solution to their problem. The kid was twitchy. Cruz hated twitchy. And he looked barely old enough to drive, let alone be the great computer whiz he was rumored to be. Hell all of that could probably be over looked if not for the fact that this kid worked for freaking Morgan and Corrinthos! What was it about him being a cop did Lulu just not understand?

Not to mention Spinelli had called him Apollo. Who the hell was Apollo?

"So you see Spinelli is the perfect solution."

He hadn't heard a word she said. It didn't matter. He already knew what he was going to say.

"No."

Her mouth dropped opened. As she closed it he noticed for the briefest of seconds she allowed her tongue to escape to lick her lips. It probably closest to a nanosecond than a second, but the movement so mesmerized him; he completely missed the start of her argument.

"…and this way that won't happen!"

Her hands were flying as she pointed to Spinelli for emphasis. Spinelli held up his laptop with one hand, and offered a thumbs up and a mile wide smile. "The Jackal is the best Apollo. There is not a file I can't find. And I can't be caught."

Cruz fixed a glare in the younger man's direction. "Morgan caught you. That doesn't speak well for your credentials."

"Cruz!" Lulu hit her hands on the table. "Spinelli is the best and we need the best here."

"Thank you Blonde One." Spinelli did a small bow. "The Jackal is forever in your service."

Cruz rolled his eyes. What the hell had he ever done do deserve _this _karmic payback? What? He would swear to whatever deity there was if only to stop this!

Spinelli moved closer to him. "Here Apollo. Let me show you what I mean" He opened the laptop and began to run some sort of program. "See Apollo…"

He'd had it. "My name is Cruz. You can call me Cruz. You can call me Rodriquez" he growled and pointed his finger in Spinelli's direction. "Most likely you will call me Detective some day but you will stop calling me Apollo."

"Woah. You're all dramatic like Film Guy. And intense like Muscles." Spinelli looked in Lulu's direction. "Blonde One I think the Jackal is back to working alone."

"And that is the first sensible thing either one of you has said this entire time." Cruz turned his back and began to walk towards the door, determined to leave this lunacy behind him. An ice-cold beer with some of the guys from work would go along way to convince him this was all some prolonged hallucination.

"You two are the most impossible.." Lulu couldn't finish the sentence and let out an exasperated sigh instead. Cruz turned to watch her stand and flash those angry blue orbs at him. He was once again struck at just how damn gorgeous she was when she was angry.

_Would you stop that She is a freshman in college. Freshman. Last year she was in high school. Last year you transferred into a new department as the senior officer. And that person you were assigned as a partner? Yeah that would be her brother. Her older brother. Not enough to stop these thoughts? Well I got more where that came from._

Lulu pointed her finger at Spinelli. "You stay here. And you…" she turned her focus directly to Cruz. "You will follow me." She moved quickly to the door. When she noticed both of them were still standing absolutely still. Lulu placed her hands on her hip and stomped her foot. "NOW!"

"Good luck. The Blonde One takes no prisoners when she is angry." Spinelli whispered to him.

He was a grown man. There was no reason he should be following the orders of an 18 year old girl having a temper tantrum because she was told no. At least that was what the logical part of his brain told him as he followed her out into the main floor and towards another empty study room nearby. He needed to remain calm and in control of the situation.

Apparently someone, somewhere had other plans.

"What is your problem?"

"My problem?"

"Yes your problem. You had some objection to the whole breaking into the skank bag's medical records. I got that. I came up with another plan that gets what I want and keeps that whole paranoia of yours about breaking the law out of it. So what is the problem with Spinelli?"

"You mean besides the fact that it's still breaking into medical files which is still against the law? Besides the fact that his main employer is the local mob boss? Besides the fact that he practically talks in a foreign language? Besides all that what is my problem?"

She stood there with her arms crossed over her chest with an expression that clearly said she was waiting for something more convincing than what he was saying. He took a breath. And another one. He had to approach this calmly.

"Lulu. I know you want to get her records. I know that. And it totally is proof she was faking it if she was. But there has to be another way."

"The other ways will take too long."

"Little Spencer these things take time. All good investigations do."

"We don't have time Cruz. We just don't." Lulu flopped backwards into a chair.

He pulled a chair in front of her. Something else was driving this. Something other than her desire to have her way. "Talk to me Camorrista. I can't help you out with this if you aren't on the level with me."

She bit her lip and looked away. "I know if I'm wrong about this and I rush it I'll hurt Lucky worse than he already is. I get that. But if I don't have answers then I don't know how to help him."

"Lulu you are helping him."

"No I'm not. I can't when she keeps showing up every two seconds to remind him about something he won't forget ever and that he will always blame himself for. If I can stop it because she's faking then I can beat her up or something. If she wasn't, then I have to figure out a way to stop her from talking to him about every chance she gets. I need to know how to help him and I need to know soon."

Damn. He couldn't argue her out of this one. He felt his resolve further weaken when he noticed her biting her lips and that her eyes were suspiciously wet. She wasn't going to cry was she? He never did do well with women when they cried.

Damn it. He was going to cave. He knew it.

"This is that important to you?"

Seeing her nod, he sighed. "Fine. We'll work with Spinelli." She spun around in her chair, her face beaming. He held up his hand "But I do not want to any and I do mean any of the details."

"You won't. I swear." She launched herself out of the chair and hugged him hard. "Thank you Cruz. Thank you."

He allowed himself to briefly enjoy the sensation of her pressing herself against him. _Pervert. It's a hug. _As she disengaged herself and moved towards the door, he felt the desire to press his luck and try for one more little victory.

"And Spinelli stops calling me Apollo."

Lulu turned and smiled at him. "Oh let him have his fun. Besides you feel flattered. Its not everyone that gets a nickname from his second favorite TV show of all time."

"Second favorite?"

"Well no offense, but there is no way you are a Mulder." Laughing she moved out the door and back towards Spinelli.

He sat back, admiring her walk. He shook himself as he realized exactly what he was doing. This had disaster written all over it. The nickname he had causally given her suddenly seemed all too appropriate.

"Camorrista."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 7**

To the rest of the world, it appeared Lulu was engrossed with her English assignment. Her feet were propped on the chair across from her at the small table in Kelly's she was currently occupying. Her fingers moved the pages at a steady rate and every now and again, she would pause to write something down in her open notebook.

However the words were blurred to her. She couldn't have told anyone if she was reading her English assignment or a History assignment. No Lulu Spencer was not engrossed in any sort of book reading. She had practically dated the professor of this class. If he flunked her, she would totally yell sexual harassment and most likely win.

No, her used copy of The Iliad was merely a prop to disguise what she was actually doing. Mainly, glaring holes in the back of one Maxie McSlutty, currently doing her best imitation of a waterfall. Waterworks, Lulu was suspicious, that had only started once she spotted Lucky walking into the restaurant from the courtyard. She wouldn't put it past Stalkeraxie to be watching from one of the upstairs windows, just waiting for Lucky to stop by. After all it was his day to meet Liz and Cameron and have Cameron for the night. Where else would she be but crying over her supposed baby?

She had to restrain herself from running over there right this second and shouting to every person gathered in Kelly's that she had not found so much as one record outside of her initial pregnancy test and the miscarriage to prove Stalkeraxie had actually been pregnant. Nothing. She had seen not one record at General Hospital regarding any kind of prenatal care. Odd for someone who's pregnancy would be so high risk due to her heart transplant.

She glanced down at her notebook and saw the words she had written there. Cruz's words from a month ago. Words that stopped her every single time she thought of them.

_"Lucky already knows that. He confronted her on it before the miscarriage. She gave him a reason. Not a good one but a reason. And she can just as easily have had care at another hospital, or a clinic or a private doctor. It's not enough Little Spencer."_

She had been only mildly irritated when she realized Cruz knew that searching for hospital records were going to prove to be a dead end. He had protested Lucky had only told him a few days ago when the two were stuck on dock duty yet again, but still he could have told her. A head's up would have been nice since they were partners and all.

Not that he was all that active a partner. He was true to his word in not wanting to know anything about how exactly Spinelli found absolutely nothing in the records. He wanted to know even less about Spinelli's current search through the other hospital records and the plans to move on to the local clinics. He constantly shot down her ideas. He wouldn't let her tell Lucky anything without some mythical thing he called "bulletproof evidence." She had snorted at him when he has said this. Obviously he hadn't lived in Port Charles long if he thought there was such a thing about bulletproof evidence. Hell at this point, Lulu was fairly certain she was the only member of her family that hadn't been accused of a crime based on "bulletproof evidence".

So why the hell did she keep running to him with every idea she came up with if she knew he was going to shoot her down? Her fingers idly moved the pen around the paper. She should just cut her looses, move on and only work with Spinelli. At least he treated her ideas with some respect.

But Spinelli's nicknames didn't make her feel all girly inside like Cruz's did. And Spinelli didn't speak Spanish to her. She paused to amend her thought. Spinelli tried to speak Spanish to her, he just didn't do as well as Cruz did. Or with that intense look in his eyes like when Cruz spoke it. Or with that accent. When Cruz spoke Spanish, she felt all melty inside. When Spinelli attempted it, she felt like giggling.

And of course there was no way Spinelli could fill out those basketball shorts in the same manner Cruz did. Of course that brought back memories of the shirtless basketball game she had spied. Or all the other ones she had spied since then once she figured out his game schedule. Her own workout routine had actually become predictable since that particular discovery.

She felt herself becoming warm just from thinking about Cruz's basketball habits. She bit her lip as she glanced at the patterns her pen had made. If either of her brothers had come by the table at this exact moment, she fully realized she would blush or slam the book shut. The entire she had been thinking about Cruz, her hands had designed a series of hearts with his initials inside of them. God he was so turning her into a girl!

The tinkling of a bell shook her from her thoughts. She shut her book immediately as she recognized both Guy and Lucas enter Kelly's. She was not going to spend her day mooning over Cruz Rodriguez. So what if he filled out a pair of jeans better than anyone she had seen lately? She was not attracted to him. She was not comparing every guy she saw on campus to him. She just wasn't.

As Guy waved at her and made his approach while Lucas paused to talk to Lucky and Maxie, Lulu couldn't even start to buy the bullshit she was trying to sell herself. She was so screwed here.

She was without a doubt, one hundred percent, falling for one Detective Cruz Rodriguez. And there was absolutely nothing she could do about the situation.

"Why are you looking so put out Gorgeous? Did someone run over your dog?" Guy knocked her feet off their perch and took their place.

"No car would run over Foster." Lucas declared as he joined the two of them. "They would be afraid he'd total the car."

She briefly wondered how Lucas and Guy would react to the real reason she looked so distracted. _I am falling for an older man. No not my English professor. My brother's partner. All I have been thinking about lately involves me, him and his pair of handcuffs._ She rejected the idea as way too tempting for Guy and Lucas to attempt matchmaking for her. The last blind date they had set her up on had been nothing less than excruciating. Lulu settled for another situation that was the truth, just not the total truth.

"No." She gestured with her hands towards the table She-Witch still occupied with Lucky. "That is what is the matter. She came flying down here two seconds after he entered the door and now when Cameron and Liz come in today that is the first thing they will see." She folded her arms and pouted in the boys' direction. "It so doesn't help my plan."

"Liz and Cameron are coming by today?" Georgie's voice sounded behind Lulu. She turned and saw her former friend standing behind them, ready to take their orders like a good waitress. Lulu shifted uncomfortably in her seat as she nodded. She and Georgie hadn't spent much time together after the Dillon Disaster but she still appreciated the other girl's support when she had been deciding what to do about her pregnancy. It was still surreal to think one of the most supportive people of her decision was the wife of the man she slept with. Dr. Phil would have a field day with that one she figured.

Georgie's eyes narrowed as she looked at her sister and Lucky. "Why do I think she knew about that?" she muttered under her breath. "What time are they supposed to be here?" she asked Lulu.

Lulu quickly glanced at her watch. "About five minutes or so I think. Not too long from now."

Georgie nodded. "Give me two minutes and she will not be near him when they get here." She ran off into the kitchen.

Lucas shook his head. "I have no idea what Georgie Girl is up to, but I have a feeling that we will not want to be Maxie when Georgie's plan starts."

Mike exited the kitchen, with Georgie following him quickly. She stopped at the table, with her pen and waitress pad ready, looking for all the world that she was actually working and not paying attention to her sister being asked by Mike to come with him. Four pairs of eyes watched, three in shock and admiration and one in amusement as Maxie got up and followed him back into the small office of Kelly's. In a matter of seconds a potential disaster completely adverted.

"You guys want your usuals?" Georgie asked, trying not to laugh.

"What exactly just happened?" Lulu demanded. Lucas and Guy nodded their agreement and Lucas pushed out the fourth chair as he stood to shove his younger cousin into it.

"Spill. That was some very Jones-esque thinking there cuz."

The other girl shook her head. "It was nothing. You all know how close Mike and Lucky are. I just mentioned to Mike what was going on and he just happened to pick right this second to discuss some noise complaints the other tenants have had regarding her."

"Georgie the only other tenants right now are you, that new guy Cooper and that other new guy. And those two are never here."

"You want to sweat the details Spencer? It worked didn't it?"

Lulu smiled widely, feeling a connection with Georgie at long last not tainted by anything to do with Dillon. "Nope. I never sweat the details. It would ruin my make-up."

"Exactly." Georgie returned the grin. Maybe this whole silly fight between them could be put to rest now Lulu wondered. It wasn't like she was still interested in Dillon. Not since she discovered Cruz.

She mentally cursed herself. _Stop that! He's just a guy. A really hot guy, but still he's just a guy. You do not need to have him on your brain twenty four-seven. He is so not worth that amount of energy no matter how good he looks in jeans. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it._

"What about you Gorgeous? You got a hot date lined up for the event?"

Guy's question distracted her from her mental beat down. They had obviously switched topics of conversation but she would damned if she knew what they were talking about. The event?

"You could not have forgotten about the event Lulu! Its all my mom has been talking about for weeks now!" Lucas shook his head in amazement.

Now it was coming back to her. Aunt Bobbie had organized another fundraiser for a hospital wing in Uncle Tony's honor. This time she had decided on a theme a little more fun than the bachelor auction had been. Lulu snorted when she remembered that event. Half of the men hadn't even been bachelors. Some auction. This time the fundraiser was going to be an all ages' pajama party. It had been the only topic of conversation with Aunt Bobbie for weeks.

"Of course I'm going. The whole date thing…"

Guy smiled. "That means you don't have one. And I have a great guy for you."

"No."

"Just hear me out here. I know the last guy I set you up with wasn't Mr. Perfect."

"Mr. Perfect? Guy, he wasn't even Mr. Takes a Shower Every Day! No. I am not going on another one of your pity blind dates. No."

"You can't go alone Lulu." Lucas was trying to reason with her. "If you do, you know my mom will be sending "appropriate" young men your way all night." He pointed his finger in Georgie's direction. "Same goes for you too Missy."

Georgie caught Lulu's eye and smiled a tentative smile. "I'll watch your back if you watch mine." She offered out her hand.

Lulu grinned and shook the outstretched hand. "Deal."

She'd go to the party, dance, hang out with her friends and remember her uncle. It was going to be the perfect way to get her mind off of one Cruz Rodriguez.

Who knew? Maybe she would end up in a darken corner making out with a hot sexy stranger before the night was over? Maybe she would meet her real Mr. Right that night and make her forget about this crush for once and for all.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 8**

Lucky Spencer was a dead man.

Plain and simple. Cruz didn't give a rat's ass if Spencer had been a good friend up to this point. Didn't give a shit if the man did know the best places in town to hear live music. As soon as Lucky was close enough for Cruz to get a hand on him, he was dead.

Of course he would have to leave this corner first.

Cruz took another drink from the beer he had hurriedly grabbed running for this corner of the crowded room. The small space between the bar and the wall was now the only thing keeping his supposed partner alive at this point.

It had been the unsaid understanding of everyone on the force that if you were not scheduled to work the night of the Tony Jones Memorial Hospital Wing Pajama Party fundraiser, you were expected to be at the fundraiser. So Cruz, as had every other officer who wanted to keep off of Mac's bad side, had bought his ticket and dressed up to attend the event.

Too bad his so-called friend didn't mention to him that when Port Charles held a theme party, the citizens actually dressed in the theme.

So while all around him, his fellow party goers of all ages were dancing to the music and enjoying the festivities in various forms of sleepwear, including Lucky in his tank top and sweatpants, Cruz stood hidden in his dress slacks, dress shirt, tie and black blazer.

He took another swig of his beer, placing the empty bottle on the bar. He was signaling the bartender for another one, when she caught his eye.

Lulu Spencer had chosen that exact moment to follow her friends out on the dance floor and give every man in the room a good look at exactly how well little Lulu Spencer had grown up.

A simple white tank top had never looked so good. The light green pajama pants had some sort of pattern on them, but Cruz would have to get closer to find out exactly what it was. The pants ended just high enough to show her shapely ankles. Some sort of ballet slipper covered her feet.

Cruz shook his head, took a swig of his beer and looked in a deliberate fashion away from her. Shapely ankles? What the hell was wrong with him? He went from planning her brother's murder to noticing how her ankles looked? Had he taken a gun shot to the head lately he wasn't aware of?

It was becoming a familiar pattern with him. One he prayed to break. Every time he saw Lulu these days, he would spend half the time admiring her and the other half mentally berating himself for even noticing her.

He suspected part of the problem was he had just gone too long without a date with anyone he found interesting. As he tried to remember the last promising date he had, he leaned his head on the bar when an unwelcome realization came to him. The last promising date he had was right before he had started working with Lulu. He had a few dates since then, but no one seemed to capture his interest as much as one Lulu Spencer.

"Shit. I am up such a creek here." He muttered to the bar top.

"Cruz?" He raised his head as Liz's voice drifted over to him. "Did you not realize this was a theme party?"

"Funny. I've changed my mind. I don't like you anymore."

"Oh." She stuck out her lower lip in a mock pout. "So is that why you are hiding here in the corner instead of making sure your boss sees that you're here?" Liz reached out and laid her hand on his arm. "Cruz you shouldn't worry about what people think." She told him in a teasing tone.

He grinned down at her, noticing for the first time her outfit. "And you have no reason not to want certain people to see this outfit right? You're back here at the bar purely for my self-esteem right?"

Liz glanced down at her oversized t-shirt that proudly announced she was a member of the PCPD Police Academy Class of 2003. The fuzzy pink slippers and the black pants completed the outfit.

"I don't remember seeing your picture on the wall at the station Liz."

She pursed her lips at him with an amused glint in her eyes. "Touché, Cruz. Touché." She rested her elbows on the bar. "So who didn't tell you?"

"Your future dead husband." He spotted Lucky out of the corner of his eye and pointed in his direction.

_Shit_, he thought. Lucky had to move to stand near his sister and her friends. Now he had a perfect view of Lulu as she gyrated to the music. And no reason to look away without causing some sort of radar to go off in Elizabeth.

Yet another reason to kill Lucky Spencer.

Lulu moved and swayed to the beat of the music with a skill Cruz was convinced was only known to teenaged girls. The back of tank top had started to snake up her back and he felt his mouth go dry as he spotted the smallest of glimpse of the small of her back. His mouth went even drier when Cruz realized her pants were slipping lower with every shake of her hips.

He raised his beer to his lips and finished it off without taking his eyes off of her. He felt like a moth being drawn to a flame. Every flip of her hair, the raise of her arms, even the bend of her knees were calling him to her. He forced himself to breathe as she leaned forward, inadvertently showing him the curve of her ass.

He was beyond up shit creek. He was drowning in shit creek.

Belatedly, he realized that Elizabeth had stopped talking. She was looking up at him, a quizzical expression on her face. "Earth to Cruz. Where are you?"

_Lusting after your sister-in-law. _He somehow figured that wouldn't go over well. "Just plotting Lucky's murder." It was close. He _had_ been doing that. He was just distracted was all.

"I'm sure he didn't mean not to tell you…" Elizabeth paused when she noticed his look of disbelief. "Ok fine he probably did and probably found it funny. But you won't have to kill him."

"I won't?"

She gestured out to the dance floor "Lulu's outfit and dancing will take care of all that for you."

He took back everything he ever said about liking Elizabeth. He had lied. He hated her. He was trying _not_ to watch Lulu dance and here she was _making_ him do just that. Ok in all fairness she didn't realize that he was being a complete pervert about her, but just what she thinking encouraging people to look at her younger sister-in-law like that.

Cruz's eyes took the opportunity to roam her body without fear of being caught. After all, Elizabeth _had_ told him to look at her. So it would be rude not to look. Damn, had that shirt slid higher or had the pants slipped lower? He would swear in a court of law that there was more skin showing than when he had looked a few minutes ago. Which was it? Higher or lower? Did he really care one way or the other?

He had to look away. Watching her was torture and if he looked much longer he was going to do something stupid. Like go out there and dance. No one needed to see him dance. Cruz turned to signal for another beer. If he was going to be tortured for the night, he might as well not be thirsty during it.

"Oh my god, I can't believe she showed up wearing that!" An outraged female voice cut through the music to him. He caught Elizabeth's eye and smiled. She giggled.

"I know." A second voice joined in. "Tony Jones was her uncle and she honors him by wearing that?"

_Uh-oh._ Cruz and Elizabeth looked over in the direction the other women were glaring in. _This wasn't going to be good._

Maxie Jones stood at the far end of the bar in what could generously called sleepwear. While the rest of the town wore sweats, pajama pants, t-shirts, and tank tops, Maxie had chosen clothes that Cruz had never seen actual woman wear to bed in his life. It was almost transparent. The skirt was too short and the top too tight. If he weren't so sure she was serious he would have thought it was a joke.

"Are those garters?" he heard Elizabeth ask in disbelief. "How high are those heels?"

_Better question_, Cruz thought. _How fast can Lucky run?_ Because Maxie Jones was staring directly at his partner and she was starting to walk directly to him. And Elizabeth looked as if she was going to explode at any second.

Cruz took a drink from his new beer. Lucky Spencer was a dead man. And he wasn't going to have a thing to do with it.


End file.
